As the US presidential elections draw near, former US President Donald Trump has made his pick for Vice President, selecting Ohio senator JD Vance as his running mate on Monday.
Trump confirmed Vance’s candidature through a post on social media. “After lengthy deliberation and thought, and considering the tremendous talents of many others, I have decided that the person best suited to assume the position of Vice President of the United States is Senator JD Vance of the Great State of Ohio,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
After years of scathing criticism of Trump, Vance has embraced the populist ideology of the former president; this choice further elevates him. After getting support from Trump in a fierce Republican primary, Vance, a venture entrepreneur and the author of the best-selling memoir “Hillbilly Elegy”, was elected to the US Senate in 2022, according to CNN.
“J.D. honorably served our Country in the Marine Corps, graduated from Ohio State University in two years, Summa Cum Laude, and is a Yale Law School Graduate, where he was Editor of The Yale Law Journal and President of the Yale Law Veterans Association. J.D.’s book, ‘Hillbilly Elegy,’ became a Major Best Seller and Movie, as it championed the hardworking men and women of our Country. J.D. has had a very successful business career in Technology and Finance, and now, during the Campaign, will be strongly focused on the people he fought so brilliantly for, the American Workers and Farmers in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Minnesota, and far beyond….” Trump further said in his post.
“…As Vice President, J.D. will continue to fight for our Constitution, stand with our Troops, and will do everything he can to help me MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN. Congratulations to Senator JD Vance, his wife, Usha, who also graduated from Yale Law School, and their three beautiful children. MAGA2024!” the post added.
Notably, in May this year, JD Vance slammed US President Joe Biden for calling India and Japan “xenophobic”. Calling Biden’s foreign policy a “clown show”, Vance said that Biden insulted the US’s two crucial allies in countering China just because they don’t have open borders allowing the influx of immigrants.
“Biden insults our two most important allies in countering China all because they don’t believe in open borders. This guy’s foreign policy is an absolute clown show,” JD Vance posted on 3rd May.
Back in March 2022, the speculations were rife that Biden administration might impose sanctions on India under its Countering America’s Adversaries through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), over India’s purchase of the S-400 missile defence system from Russia. At that time, Vance had heavily criticised Biden.
“Let’s just be direct: the Biden administration is pursuing a policy of freezing and starving normal Americans. Whether it’s their goal, it’s the obvious effect of what they’re doing. And their reprehensible media cheerleaders are calling it “shared sacrifice”. It’s going to get much, much worse. And there’s no obvious endpoint or goal. Indeed, the stupidity is so extreme it makes you wonder whether it’s stupidity or malicious intent. “Let’s sanction India, which makes 90 percent of our generic pharmaceuticals.” What are they doing?,” Vance posted.
While the Biden administration extended financial and military aid to Ukraine in its war against Russia, JD Vance has opposed this stand. Vance has said that America should engage in basic diplomacy with Russia for American interests.
Supports Trump’s call for Israel to ‘finish the job’ against Hamas in Gaza
JD Vance has also backed Trump’s call for Israel to “finish the job” against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, claiming that relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia can only be cemented after Hamas is defeated in Gaza. In May of this year, Vance explained why he supports Israel’s war against Hamas terrorists.
At the Munich Security Conference in February, Vance advocated for Trump’s “America First” foreign policy, arguing that European countries should take on greater responsibility for military defence, particularly manufacturing, so that the United States may shift resources to Asia to counter an aggressive China. “We want Europe to be successful, but Europe has got to take a bigger role in its own security. You can’t do that without industry, Vance said.
Called UK under Labour party rule as an ‘Islamist country’
Recently, JD Vance said that the United Kingdom will be the first Islamist country that will get a nuclear weapon. Vance made these remarks after the Labour Party won a historic mandate in UK general elections.
“I have to beat up on the UK – just one additional thing. I was talking with a friend recently. And we were talking about, you know, one of the big dangers in the world, of course, is nuclear proliferation, though, of course, the Biden administration doesn’t care about it…What is the first truly Islamist country that will get a nuclear weapon? And we were like, maybe it’s Iran, you know, maybe Pakistan already kind of counts. And then we sort of finally decided maybe it’s actually the UK,” Vance said.
Vivek Ramaswamy supports Trump’s choice, says Vance is his friend and classmate
On Monday, Indian-American entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy expressed joy over Trump picking JD Vance as his running mate and said, “So proud of my friend, classmate, and fellow southwest Ohioan today. We used to watch Bengals games at the bar in law school, it’s awesome we’re now here a decade later with JD joining the strongest presidential ticket in our lifetime. He’ll be an outstanding Vice President and I look forward to everything ahead for him and for our country.”
Marco Rubio of Florida and Governor Doug Burgum of North Dakota, who were considered to be the frontrunners in the race, are now out of it. Vance has been a supporter of Trump in the Senate and frequently casts votes in the former president’s favour.
He echoed Trump’s criticism of increasing aid by opposing a bill aimed at assisting Ukraine earlier this year. He is also close with the former President’s son, Donald Trump Jr, according to a CNN report.
According to the report, Vance–a veteran, author, and former venture capitalist–was one of the contenders who obtained vice-presidential vetting materials from the Trump campaign.
Vance is married to Usha Chilukuri, daughter of Indian immigrants
Vance was born James David Bowman in Middletown, Ohio, to a mother who struggled with addiction and a father who left the family when JD was a toddler. He was raised by his grandparents.
In 2017, Vance returned to Ohio and continued to work in venture capital. He and his wife, Usha Chilukuri Vance, whom he met at Yale, have three children. Usha Vance, born Usha Chilukuri, is an attorney who has carved out a successful career in the legal field.
Born to Indian immigrant parents, she grew up with a strong emphasis on education and hard work in a San Diego, California, suburb. Usha attended Yale University and also graduated from Yale Law School.
While at Yale, Usha served as managing editor of the Yale Journal of Law & Technology and executive development editor of The Yale Law Journal, according to a biography from Munger, Tolles & Olson law firm. This development comes on the heels of the recent assassination attempt on former US President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday (July 13).
The Trump campaign says the former president, following his brush with death, will call for unity in the face of tragedy instead of criticising his political adversaries as he faces off with President Biden in a 2024 election rematch.
Assassination attempt on Donald Trump
Trump was on stage at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania’s Butler before gunshots rang out and Secret Service agents stormed the stage. Following the attack on Trump, the Secret Service agents surrounded the Republican candidate and escorted him off the stage, with blood visible across his face. Donald Trump said that the bullet pierced the upper part of his ear. One of the rally attendees was killed, while two more were critically injured. The gunman was also killed by US Secret Service agents.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has identified the gunman as Thomas Matthew Crooks. It further said that an investigation is underway into the shooting incident.
Earlier in the day, the classified documents case against former US President Donald Trump was dismissed by Judge Aileen Cannon on Monday, CNN reported.
Cannon said the appointment of special counsel Jack Smith “violated the Constitution.”
Trump was indicted in June last year by a federal grand jury in Miami. He was accused of taking classified national defence documents from the White House after he left office and resisting the government’s attempts to retrieve the materials. However, both Trump and his aide, Walt Nauta, pleaded not guilty to the charges.